Men’s College Basketball 2024: 5 key freshmen to watch in the Big Ten

Perhaps the best part of the college basketball season is being introduced to the thrilling freshmen who take the sport by storm and turn into folk heroes in just a few months, all culminating in March. We're in the "introductory" phase of CBB right now, and in the next few weeks, we'll meet the players who will run this sport for the next six months. Here are a few freshmen in the Big Ten who are bound to make noise this year in an expanded conference.

Ace Bailey, Rutgers

In a conference with multiple blue-blood college basketball programs, it's the Rutgers Scarlet Knights who enter this season with the most highly-touted freshmen (yes, men) in the whole conference. Ace Bailey doesn't have the same preseason hype that fellow 5-star recruit Cooper Flagg does down the coast, but he's nearly as heralded a prospect as Flagg is.

Bailey is a frightening athlete, possessing physical tools that few other basketball players in the world have, much less players who just graduated from high school. He's listed as 6-foot-10 on the Rutgers website, which is not fair if it's true. His shot-making ability is sensational at times and he'll undoubtedly light up some scoreboards in his (likely) single year as a college player.

Bailey needs to put on some weight (as most 18 year-olds do) and improve his passing ability, but the excitement factor of Bailey's scoring potential far outweighs any potential deficiencies he has right now. There will be many, many highlights from Bailey at Rutgers and he'll become a household name pretty quickly.

Dylan Harper, Rutgers

Oh right, there's another one. Dylan Harper is the other five-star recruit on Rutgers roster this year, and the 6-foot-5 point guard picked Rutgers over the likes of Duke, Kansas and Indiana. Harper is explosive but has also shown an ability to play composed and calm, and his playmaking ability will complement Bailey's scoring promise perfectly.

Harper plays with a fire that bodes well for point guards. You want your point guard to be a little crazy, a little off the rails. That's how a whole team buys in, when its leader clearly wants to win and destroy everything in the way in order to do so.

Two freshmen do not make a team, but Bailey and Harper come pretty close. If they're as good as advertised, this Rutgers team will be must-watch TV.

Derik Queen, Maryland

Derik Queen is a very large teenager. At 6-foot-10 and 246 pounds, the freshman center from Baltimore decided to stay home and play for a Maryland program in its second year under Kevin Willard. Queen made an instant impact in Maryland's first game, showing a dizzying mix of footwork, power and energy on the block en route to 22 points and 20 rebounds. An outrageous box score for a first college basketball game.

Although Maryland was picked to finish tenth in the Big Ten media poll, Queen might be good enough to keep this team competitive in conference play.

Will Riley, Illinois

Well, it didn't take much time for Will Riley to acclimate to the college game, scoring 31 points in his Illinois debut on Tuesady. The 6-foot-9 forward plays a really smooth game and looks like he'll be a natural scorer at the college level (and probably one at the NBA level, too.)

Granted, this game was against Eastern Illinois, but dropping 31 in your college debut is impressive no matter the competition. Paired with fellow freshman Morez Johnson, the Illini have a few exciting fresh faces of their own.

Illinois is right on the bubble of the AP Top 25, and will likely hop into the rankings sooner rather than later. Will Riley probably won't average 31 points per game this season (though who knows) but if he can be a consistent scoring threat, then these Illini will likely stay in the rankings for a lot of the year.

Zoom Diallo, Washington

Yes, it's still weird that Washington is in the Big Ten. No, we won't get used to it. Anyway, Zoom Diallo is another player who stayed close to home, just heading a little north on I-5 from Tacoma, Washington to Seattle to play for the Huskies.

Diallo drives with aggression and purpose, often playing like he forgets he's 6-foot-4, and inhabiting the body of a 6-foor-8 wing instead. He's going to scrap for balls grab rebounds, make shots, and almost certainly become a fan favorite in Seattle.